"I take my hat off to him,'' Rose said in an interview with FanHouse after his East team fell 148-143 to Anthony's West outfit in the NBA All-Star Game at the Staples Center. "He's handling the pressure but still playing well. Man, he's doing good. I definitely couldn't go through it.''

Perhaps it would elicit a chuckle if Rose was playing off what Anthony had said last weekend, but he said he actually hadn't read that quote.

Speaking of hats, it's still up in the air if he'll soon be donning one for a Northeast Division team at a press conference as Thursday's trade deadline approaches. The hours are ticking down before the Nuggets will trade Anthony to New York, try to convince him to agree to a contract extension for a deal to get done with New Jersey or roll the dice and keep him in Denver.

Then again, with as much craziness as this Anthony situation has had, maybe some other team will throw its hat into the ring